Chateaubriand Hotel on the Champs Elysees

After the wonderful guided tour of the trendy Marais District of Paris I headed over to my hotel as I still had a few more days left in Paris. This time around I was staying at the Chateaubriand Hotel, which is located just behind the famous Champs Elysees. At first I was skeptical due to the close proximity to the busy street, but my skepticism quickly vanished upon entering the hotel.

When you first arrive at the hotel, the owner, Romain Rio, greets every guest personally. Considering this, he still made me feel as if I was the only guest at his hotel, and that went a long way with me. I settled into my room and was taken aback at all the fine little details of this hotel. From antiques that Romain hand selected to the towel racks that were actually luggage racks that came from the Orient Express. Such tastefully designed decor! Even the carpet on the main stair case came from the Palais de lâ€™Elysees, which is the residence and office of the French President. Despite some less than ideal reviews on the internet, I really enjoyed this hotel and all that it had to offer. The location was fabulous even though it didnâ€™t feel like it was too close to the Champs Elysees.

After settling into my hotel, I had plans to have dinner with friends from the suburbs of Paris. We met up at the Benoit, an old school, traditional Parisian bistro from famed restaurant owner Alain Ducasse. The Benoit was awarded 1 Michelin star and I was anxious to see how the food compared to the 2 starred restaurant I had just dined at.

The food here was fabulous and it made me wonder why this particular establishment was only awarded 1 star. Benoit is famous for their escargot, but I didnâ€™t opt for them as Iâ€™m not keen on those, but one of my friends did order them and they did look pretty good, (considering they are snails and all). I chose the beef filet which was served with a side of â€śGratin de macaroniâ€ť which happened to be the fanciest Mac + cheese I had ever seen or tasted. I really enjoyed this meal as the food was amazing and the setting was great. A classic Paris bistro tucked away in the heart of the city.

The night was still young after dinner, so we all decided to take a Seine River tour on the Bateaux-Mouches, which left from Pont de lâ€™Alma. While I had been on this tour before, I had never experienced it at night. What a difference! They arenâ€™t kidding when they call Paris the â€śCity of Lights.â€ť Cruising on the Seine at night is one activity that I highly suggest to anybody visiting Paris. You get a gorgeous perspective of Paris while it is all lit up in its magnificent beauty. It truly is a magical experience and I got to enjoy it with some of my close friends.

After the river tour, I walked back to my hotel along Champs Elysees and Avenue Montaigne. While I felt perfectly safe from danger, my credit card would have felt different had the shops been open! The stores do an all too wonderful job of lighting up the shop windows, displaying their best wares, and tempting even the most disciplined shoppers!